Go back to News
NEWS
Nuno de Oliveira Garcia analyses Tax Authority interpretation of productivity bonuses | GA_P
3 of November, 2025
Nuno de Oliveira Garcia, partner in tax at Gómez-Acebo & Pombo, believes that the Tax Authority limits the IRS exemption and could undermine the aim of promoting merit and productivity.
The Tax Authority limits the IRS exemption to “voluntary and non-regular” productivity bonuses, excluding most standard bonuses. According to Nuno de Oliveira Garcia, this interpretation “creates a restriction not foreseen by the legislator” and makes it difficult to apply the benefit to bonuses tied to contracts or internal policies.
The scheme only covers one-off bonuses up to 6% of the annual salary and requires minimum wage increases, leaving many variable pay strategies excluded. Experts warn that, if this reading persists, only discretionary, non-contractual bonuses linked to unpredictable results would be eligible.
The controversy opens the door to possible legal revisions or challenges, aiming to ensure the exemption achieves its intended purpose of encouraging performance and salary enhancement.
Press contact
Director of Business Development, Marketing and Communications
Director of Business Development, Marketing and Communications
More information about
Gómez-Acebo & Pombo
26 Dec, 2025 
PUBLICATION
18 Dec, 2025
Highlights of the OECD Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital update
The new update to the OECD Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital incorporates regulatory adjustments, interpretative clarifications and additional criteria in response to recent developments in international taxation. It addresses relevant issues relating, among other things, cross-border teleworking, the exploration and exploitation of natural resources, transfer pricing aspects of financial transactions or information received through exchange of information.
18 Dec, 2025 
PUBLICATION
17 Dec, 2025
New audit actions linked to advanced cooperation mechanisms in tax matters: special reference to ‘joint audits’
Recently, the Tax Agency’s departments have been altered in order to, among other things, adapt their roles and responsibilities to new forms of tax-related administrative cooperation —covered by Council Directive (EU) 2021/514 (DAC7) and transposed into the Taxation Act —. Among these, we highlight in this commentary the importance of joint audits, recalling their main characteristics and analysing some of the problems that their implementation may pose
17 Dec, 2025
PUBLICATION
02 Dec, 2025
Non-resident taxpayers may benefit from the wealth tax liability cap
All taxpayers subject to wealth tax, both residents and non-residents, are in a comparable situation and must therefore be able to apply the combined cap of Article 31(1) LIP, the existence of a real or personal obligation being irrelevant for the purposes of the comparability analysis, since the determining factor is the nature and purpose of this tax device, as well as its content.
02 Dec, 2025
PUBLICATION
14 Oct, 2025
Danish cases in Spain: Beneficial owner requirement not applicable to the non-resident income tax exemption of interest payments to EU residents
Contrary to the stance taken by the Audiencia Nacional, the Valencia High Court of Justice takes the view that the exemption of interest payments to European Union residents should be applied in accordance with the terms that the national legislature has chosen to keep, without the additional requirements of Directive 2003/49/EC. If abusive practices are found to exist, tax regularisation must be carried out by resorting to one of the general anti-abuse clauses provided for in the Taxation Act.
14 Oct, 2025
PUBLICATION
02 Sep, 2025
Property Transfer Tax in assignment of promissory contracts to sell real estate in Portugal
This article analyses situations which, although they do not involve the transfer of property ownership, are legally treated as equivalent to a sale and are subject to Transfer Tax in Portugal.
02 Sep, 2025
PUBLICATION
15 Jul, 2025
The Court of Justice upholds the annulment of the European Commission's third decision on the scheme for the tax amortisation of financial goodwill
La Sentencia del Tribunal de Justicia de 26 de junio del 2025 declara que las dos primeras decisiones de la Comisión Europea sobre la incompatibilidad con las normas sobre ayudas estatales del régimen de amortización fiscal del fondo de comercio financiero generaron confianza legítima sobre el alcance y límites de la obligación de recuperación, incluyendo dentro de su alcance las adquisiciones directas e indirectas de participaciones en empresas extranjeras. Por tanto, no cabe la recuperación retroactiva de las ayudas relacionadas con adquisiciones indirectas cubiertas por las dos primeras decisiones, por lo que debe procederse a su devolución junto con los intereses de demora.
15 Jul, 2025
PUBLICATION
22 May, 2025
CJEU clarifies conditions under which EU law may prohibit national tax exemptions
For the Grand Chamber of the CJEU, a tax exemption based on objective and non-discriminatory criteria and integrated into the logic of the legal system which it accompanies is inherent in the ‘normal’ tax regime and does not, in principle, confer a selective advantage. In such cases, the conditions for granting the exemption are neutral from the point of view of competition, as the fact that some undertakings satisfy those conditions, while others do not, is not relevant in the light of the rules on State aid.
22 May, 2025
PUBLICATION
21 Mar, 2025
Tax treatment of exemptions under the Public Service of Justice (Efficiency Measures) Act
Here follows a critical analysis of the changes made by the Public Service of Justice (Efficiency Measures) Act to the regulation of three of the exemptions provided for in Article 7 of the Personal Income Tax Act that seek to favour the implementation and promotion of non-court appropriate dispute resolution procedures.
21 Mar, 2025
PUBLICATION
24 Feb, 2025
Consequences of incorporating a shareholders’ agreement into an ancillary obligation attached to company shares
This paper intends to highlight the consequences that attaching to company shares an ancillary obligation consisting of compliance with a shareholders' agreement has (and does not have), consequences that derive from the integration of the agreement into the corporate organisation.
24 Feb, 2025